Automobile bicycle carrier racks have heretofore been made which support a bicycle on the bumper at the rear end of a vehicle with the bicycle extending generally crosswise of the vehicle. A common form of bicycle carrier rack has laterally spaced frame members supported at their lower ends on the vehicle bumper to extend generally upright, and spaced bicycle support members adjacent the upper end of the carrier rack for engaging and supporting one or more bicycles. Such carrier racks frequently interfere with use of the trunk lid, hatchback cover or station wagon door when they are mounted on the bumper. In order to facilitate removal of the carrier rack without requiring removal of the bumper fittings, bumper mounted carrier racks have heretofore been made which provide bumper mounting brackets that are mounted on the bumper and which detachably receive the lower ends of the legs of the carrier rack. However, some trunk lids and station wagon doors have very little clearance above the top of the bumper and it is important that the tops of the bumper brackets be disposed substantially flush with the top of the bumper, in order to avoid interference with the trunk lid or station wagon door, when the carrier rack is removed. Further, the type, size, and shape of the bumpers varies widely on different vehicles, and it is desirable to provide bumper mounting brackets capable of accommodating bumpers of different type, size and shape.
An important object of the present invention is to provide, in a bumper mounted carrier of the type having a pair of laterally spaced downwardly extending rack legs, a pair of bumper mounting brackets for detachably mounting the carrier rack on the bumper and which bumper mounting brackets are disposed substantially flush with the top of the bumper, to avoid interference with a trunk lid or a staton wagon door, when the carrier rack is removed from the bumper mounting brackets.
Another object of this invention is to provide bumper mounting brackets which can be mounted on bumpers of widely different type, size and shape.
Still another object of this invention is to provide a bumper mounting bracket which can be economically manufactured and easily installed on vehicle bumpers, and which are rugged and durable in use.